first haiti update

i’ve been in HAITI for 18 days now and so far, so good.   :)

 

path to the river

i got in on the same flight as my friend, franck, and he invited me to spend some time w/ him near gonaives.  there, i took a nice walk each morning, through fields of beans and millet, to a sweet little creek where i would start my day w/ a cool bath.    i made a handful of new friends there, including the members of my friend’s haitian roots music band (called Asakivle) and the neighbors (mostly children).  i spent almost all of my 10 nights there going to voodoo ceremonies in both badyo and soukri (where we were staying). 

voodoo ceremony in badyo

i must say that i did see a few things in these ceremonies that i haven’t seen in others (picture lots of dancing people covered in goat’s blood.  aaah!). 

mountains near gonaives

other than that, i spent a few days hiking over sparse mountains (with blisters to prove it) and attending a good ol’ cockfight (with a speck of blood on my pant leg to prove that ;).

my momma in soukri

makenzy

then i set off to visit petite riviere de nippes (my old stomping grounds from my peace corps days) with a couple of stops on the way.  i stopped over in port-au-prince for a night where i reconnected w/ a couple of dear old friends (anasthase & some peace corps folks) and then made it to paillant the next day.  i spent a chilly night in the red dirt mountains, visiting my good friend garry and checking in on the little sliver of land i have there (still there ;).  the next day after lunch i hopped a motorcycle and rode into my little village on the coast, petite riviere de nippes.  it was like homecoming, for sure.  i rode in on market day and the sound of so many people calling out my name filled me full up w/ joy. 

beach camping in ti riviere de nippes

i wasn’t sure exactly where i would spend the night but i figured i’d put my tent in the sand by my friend poupette’s house so i could jump in the ocean.  however, the moto driver (a friend of mine from the village) knew poupette and he informed me that both she and her husband had passed away from some illness.  what a heartbreaking blow.  i stopped by her place anyway and gave the few photos i’d brought of her and her youngest son to an aunt who is now taking care of her two kids.  then i put my tent on the beach under some coconut trees near an abandoned house.  i spent two days and nights there, catching up w/ my haitian family and friends.  i recognized so many faces but forgot so many names.  little kids i knew 5 years ago are now so grown up and new kids have been born.  things seem well there and, other than my 2 friends passing away, people seem happier than ever.  a  few friends now have motorcycles that they use as a taxi service and there is a new hotel/ bar/ restaurant in town where another friend of mine is working.  the road to get there is currently being worked on and will one day (hopefully in the not so distant future) be paved (no more dust, mud & rocks, oh joy!).  i’ve decided that that is where i want to live and work.  it is my haitian home.  so, my next project will be to find some land and build a hut of my own.  that will be fun.

with some of the youth leaders

i am now staying in cap haitien for about 3 weeks.  i linked up with a friend from hawaii (hunter) who is teaching a permaculture training for an organization called Nouvelle Vie Haiti and i was asked to volunteer as a translator for the training.  the organization then asked me to stay on for an additional week to translate for a week-long yoga course (with pay!).  the way i see it, i can use any money i can get a hold of.  plus, the visiting yogi is a world renowned dude named andrei, whom i’ve heard a bit about, and i’m curious to see what he’s got going on.  

site visit to rice farm

after this stint in cap haitien, i have no idea what’s up.  i’m totally open to getting a real job here so that i can stick around a while but i’ll keep you posted on that.

big love from ayiti cheri!  sending oodles of hugs & mangoes & coconuts your way.  xoxo